"Mm."

Qin Feng chuckled and brushed her cheek. "Alright."

The phone rang in the car, and he got out to take the call. Lin Fan organized her backpack, slung it over her shoulder, and jumped out of the car. After looking at Qin Feng, she went to the trunk and picked up the urn. Qin Feng ended his call.

"I'll take you to the station."

Lin Fan pointed to a nearby platform. "I can catch the bus there, it's only two hundred meters away."

Qin Feng's phone rang again. He glanced at it and told Lin Fan, "Take care."

"Okay." Lin Fan smiled. "I'm leaving."

Out of the fifteen cars investigated, one van with a Z city license plate was highly suspicious. The van had left Y County shortly after arriving and went to X City. When the owner of the vehicle was contacted, he was surprised; an investigation revealed the van was using a cloned plate.

The registered owner of the plate had never left Z City, and the van was still there.

A criminal gang caught in Jiangcheng confessed to trafficking humans but consistently denied the existence of a larger syndicate. The person who hit and killed Dong Hui was still at large. Whether they were part of the gang or not, they were all scum. Now, all their attention was focused on the surveillance footage. They contacted the X City police to track down the van.

The recording mentioned a meeting in Y County, so Qin Feng rechecked the surveillance footage. The cloned-plate van disappeared in Zhao Village, Y County. Qin Feng asked, "Is there surveillance in Zhao Village? Is this Zhao Village?"

"This is Zhao Village. The only surveillance is at the village entrance. Is there a problem?"

"The van stayed in Zhao Village for two hours. Why would it go there? Have you checked?"

"Should we investigate now? We're not sure if this van was involved."

Qin Feng rewound the footage two hours and saw the van leaving, heading west. West of Y County leads to the highway into X City.

"Based on the surveillance on Route 301, the van first appeared on the 301 at eleven o'clock. The next sighting was at twelve-thirty. It was heading back to Y County. The timing fits."

"How do you know the target was Y County? What if it wasn't?"

"We received a tip-off. There were kidnapped children in the van."

"Then let's go to Zhao Village now."

---

The bus to the township had no air conditioning. The air inside was stuffy. Lin Fan sat in the last row among sacks of grain and live chickens. She opened the window and turned her face outside. She closed her eyes but couldn't sleep due to the noise. Someone was trying to load a big bag of cotton onto the bus, but the ticket seller refused, saying it took up too much space.

"I can pay extra," the woman carrying the cotton pleaded.

"Ten more yuan."

"That's a rip-off," the woman, her lips trembling and face flushed, protested. "The fare is only ten yuan. You want another ten just for the cotton?"

"Then get off the bus," the ticket seller said rudely. "Hurry up, don't delay us."

The woman didn't want to get off nor pay the extra money. She begged in a low voice, "Please, let me on. I'll give you three yuan."

"Get off! Now, or we won't take you even if you pay. Look at you, covered in dust. Disgusting. I got dirty just pushing you."

Caught off guard, the woman fell onto her cotton and started crying. Some passengers began to intervene. Lin Fan took a deep breath, stood up, and handed ten yuan to the ticket seller. "Let her on."

The ticket seller rolled her eyes. "You think you can decide? Are you paying for her? Don't meddle, little girl."

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Lin Fan got off the bus, helped the woman up, and brought her back on. "Sit in the back. Put the cotton by me." She turned to the ticket seller. "Auntie, here's the money."

"She hasn't paid for her ticket yet."

Before Lin Fan could react, the woman quickly pulled out some small bills from her pocket, totaling ten yuan, and handed it to the ticket seller before heading to the back.

The cotton piled beside Lin Fan made it hard for her to breathe. The woman turned and smiled, showing a row of uneven teeth. "Thank you, girl."

Speaking in dialect, Lin Fan replied, "You're welcome."

"I still have six yuan. Take it. I can't let you pay for me."

"No need." Lin Fan pushed the money back. "Keep it."

The six yuan, made up of small bills, made Lin Fan wonder about her background. She seemed pitiful.

"Would you like an apple?" The woman offered a small, misshapen apple from her bag. "I brought it from home this morning. It's clean."

Lin Fan smiled and accepted it. "Thank you."

The woman took out a bun and started eating. It looked stale, crumbling as she ate.

"I'm from Panshanling. Where are you from?" she asked.

Lin Fan named a village. "Isn't Panshanling near Shiliang Village?"

"Very close, just next door," the woman replied. "Visit me sometime."

Lin Fan gave a noncommittal answer, playing with the apple.

The woman finished her bun and turned to look at Lin Fan again, frowning. "You don't look well."

Lin Fan tensed. "What do you mean?"

"Your forehead is dark—"

"Oh, stop it," a man in front turned and mocked. "You never get anything right with your superstitions."

Do they know each other?

The woman didn't argue and looked away.

She had a fishy smell Lin Fan couldn't quite identify, just foul.

"If you need help, come to Panshanling. My surname is Meng."

Lin Fan stiffened. "Which Meng?"

"Meng from Mencius."

She knows Mencius? Is she educated? How did she end up like this?

"Thank you."

Soon, the bus arrived near Panshanling. The woman got off with her cotton, and the bus rumbled on. The ticket seller turned to Lin Fan. "You don't know her. She always makes a fuss over money. She’s not really poor, just stingy. I despise such people."

Lin Fan didn't know how to respond. After thinking, she asked, "Is she a fortune teller?"

"Her? Just a fraud with no real skills. She’s been like that all her life, never married. Look at her, so shabby."

In a small place like this, news travels fast.

Lin Fan held the little apple, bits of cotton floating in the air.

The ticket seller and a middle-aged man continued to complain. Lin Fan, leaning against the window, felt drowsy and closed her eyes.

"Lin Fan!"

Lin Fan couldn't open her eyes. She heard voices calling out, getting closer and filled with hatred. She desperately tried to wake up but couldn't. She reached for her backpack.

"Lin Fan, how dare you come back?"

"Lin Fan! Give me back my life!" He rushed towards the car, slamming against the window. Lin Fan looked up to see a ferocious face, blood dripping from his mouth. "Give me back my life!"

He's not human. Lin Fan tried to pull out the short sword from her backpack, but the zipper wouldn't budge.

He pounded on the window. "Give me back my life! Give me back my life!"

Lin Fan finally retrieved the short sword. "What are you?"

"What am I?" The face on the window suddenly laughed, the sound sharp and piercing. "I am you!"

"Chenjia Village, who's getting off?"

Lin Fan's eyes snapped open. It was already dark outside, and the reflection of her pale face stared back at her from the window. She was still clutching the shriveled little apple—where was the short sword?

Yawning, the bus started moving again.

Lin Fan's phone chimed. She picked it up and saw a message from Qin Feng, "Are you home?"

Lin Fan replied, "Still on the bus."

Qin Feng didn't respond. Lin Fan put her phone away.

The bus wound its way into the mountains, the headlights illuminating the mountain road while the surrounding darkness pressed in, unrelenting. Finally, they reached the village entrance. Lin Fan got off, holding the urn. Lately, she had been dreaming again, dreams she hadn't shared with Qin Feng. These dreams were about the future, not the past, and in them, Qin Feng was holding her dead body. The dreams felt so real they made Lin Fan's scalp tingle. Was she about to die?

Recently, her memory had started to decline, and she felt lethargic.

The bus drove off, leaving behind silence, occasionally broken by the eerie calls of unknown birds in the surrounding forest. The night air was chilly, and Lin Fan shivered as the wind blew.

Her phone rang, and she answered it. Qin Feng's voice came through, "Are you home?"

"I'm off the bus," Lin Fan said, walking along the path to the village. "Are you in the county?"

"Yes."

"Have you eaten?"

It was very quiet around, and Lin Fan's voice was soft and gentle.

"I'm about to. I just got back from the scene."

"Did you catch anyone?"

"We caught a suspect but haven't found the kidnapped child yet," Qin Feng's voice was heavy with exhaustion. "We're still investigating. I'll probably be working late tonight."

Thinking about his current state, Lin Fan imagined he was likely about to light a cigarette. "Smoke less."

"Are you trying to control me?" Qin Feng laughed, his voice hoarse. "Hm?"

Lin Fan's face heated up, and she nearly stepped into a drainage ditch. "I am not."

"You can if you want," Qin Feng said, still laughing.

Lin Fan pressed her lips together. Ever since they confirmed their relationship, Qin Feng's comments had become increasingly shameless.

"I'm not going to control you."

Qin Feng laughed on the other end, making Lin Fan smile too. In the dim light, she saw a car. Why was there a car in this remote area? Qin Feng said, "Text me when you get home."

"Why is there a sedan in the village?" Lin Fan quickly walked towards the black car.

"What sedan?"

Lin Fan illuminated the car's logo with her phone. "Three-pointed star emblem."

"Three-pointed star?" Qin Feng thought for a moment. "A Mercedes?"

Lin Fan walked away from the car and towards the village. "Yes, it's three points in different directions. This isn't a tourist area, so why would a car like that be here? It's strange."

Qin Feng had been about to laugh but couldn't. "Do you have visitors in your village?"